Have you found that your creative juices have become more of a trickle? You are struggling to come up with new ideas, but as you stare at your bare desktop, your mind feels as bare as that looks? Toss some papers around and make a mess! A study in the journal of psychological science showed that an individual’s work space had an influence on their behaviour. People who kept a neat and tidy desk with things placed “just so” statistically were healthy eaters, more generous with their cash, and good at following rules.  Alternatively, those who had desks covered in paperwork, post-it notes and magazines were more creative and idea machines. In the first experiment, students were placed in either a neat and tidy room or a messy room and asked to perform a series of tasks. When they were finished and came out, they were asked to donate money to a charity, and then offered either an apple or a candy car as a snack. 82% of individuals in the orderly room said yes to donating to charity and 67% picked the apple, compared to 47% donating to charity and 20% picking the apple in the messy room. The next experiment focused more directly on creativity. Students were placed either around a neat boardroom table or a messy boardroom table and asked to brainstorm new ideas for ping pong balls. While both groups produced the same number of ideas, those who worked in the messy environment produced more highly creative ideas. Finally, students were placed around neat or messy desks and given a menu for a new smoothie bar. One version of the menu had a featured smoothie labeled "classic," while on another version the same smoothie was featured as "new." People were about twice as likely to go for the “new” smoothie on the messier desk as on the neat one. If you happen to be one of those neat freaks who toe the line, don’t despair – this doesn’t mean you’re doomed to a creative free life! Even you can reap the creative benefits by shaking things up temporarily. See that neat stack of folders tucked nicely on your desk? Knock it over. Leave a few pens out. Take some things out of your drawer and leave it on top of your desk. Put some fun things around your desktop, like little toys and creative stress balls. Who WOULDN’T want to throw an Angry Bird across the room when you really really need to? And if you really want to take it to the next level of reaping the benefits of both sides, create two work spaces for yourself!  

Source Url: http://gobelmont.ca/make-a-mess/